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Sunday, September 11, 2016

"wild montana skies" by susan may warren

Revell, October 2016

I began reading Wild Montana Skies on the way home from a weekend in Nashville, which seems pretty appropriate, as main character Ben King is a country superstar, one half of the wildly popular duo Montgomery King. The novel is less about country music, though, and more about finding your place—in life, in love, and in faith.

Bestselling Author's New Series Delivers Romance and Adventure as an SAR Team Searches for Others--and Finds Themselves Search and rescue pilot Kacey Fairing is home on leave in Mercy Falls, Montana, twelve years after she joined the military to escape the mistakes of her past. With a job waiting for her as the new lead pilot of Peak Rescue in Glacier National Park, Kacey hopes to reconnect with the now-teenage daughter she sees only between deployments. What she doesn't realize is that someone else is also back in town. Ben King has been building his country music career since the day Kacey shut him out of her life. Now all of that's on hold when his injured father calls him home to help run Peak Rescue until he's fully recovered. It doesn't take long, though, to discover his father's ulterior motives as Kacey Fairing walks into the house and back into his heart. With Mercy Falls in a state of emergency due to flash floods, Kacey and Ben are forced to work together to save lives. But when floodwaters turn personal, can they put aside the past to save their future?
Ben and Kacey were high school sweethearts who planned on getting married, but a series of misunderstandings drove them apart. Thirteen years later, they both wind up back in Mercy Falls, Kacey to work with PEAK search and rescue, and Ben to help his father recover following an injury. The sparks are still there—and if you've read other Susan May Warren novels, you know just how sizzling those sparks can be!—but 13 years of anger and heartache (not to mention Ben's music partner Hollie) threaten to stand in the way of their happiness.

There's a secondary romance in Wild Montana Skies involving Kacey's best friend Sierra and Ian, founder of PEAK Rescue. Their story began in the prequel novella If Ever I Would Leave You, and it continues in Wild Montana Skies. One thing to note if you did read the novella: Wild Montana Skies begins three years after the events of the novella. That wasn't super clear right away, and it did cause a little confusion for me at the beginning of the novel. Ian and Sierra's story is a bit unresolved as Wild Montana Skies ends, and I look forward to reading more about them as the series progresses.

One thing I love about Warren's novels, which looks to hold true in the Montana Rescue series, is that the conflict is always realistic. What I like to call "just talk about it already" syndrome, where all the couple's problems could be solved with a simple conversation, is nowhere to be found. Instead, there are real roadblocks to happiness, roadblocks that may, in some cases, be insurmountable (though I hope that isn't the case!).

Wild Montana Skies is a wonderful kick-off to the new Montana Rescue series. Full of romance, adventure, and faith, it kept me flipping through the pages, and I can't wait to continue the series with Rescue Me next year. 5 stars.

Susan May Warren is the ECPA and CBA bestselling author of over fifty novels, with more than one million books sold. Winner of a RITA Award and multiple Christy and Carol Awards, as well as the HOLT and numerous Readers' Choice Awards, Susan has written contemporary and historical romances, romantic suspense, thrillers, romantic comedy, and novellas. She can be found online at www.susanmaywarren.com, on Facebook at SusanMayWarrenFiction, and on Twitter @susanmaywarren.Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free for review from the author and publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

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